1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to boat cleaning apparatus, and more particularly to apparatus for automatically cleaning the bottom portion of a boat hull floating in a body of water.
2. Background Art
Within the scope of the present invention, there is contemplated an apparatus, having rotating cleaning brushes, for automatically cleaning the bottom portion of a boat hull. In conventional boat cleaning apparatus, it is typical to experience cleaning devices having rotating brushes that are manipulated manually over the hull of the boat. In order to clean the bottom portion of the hull with such devices, the operator must either dive to the hull bottom or manipulate an elaborate device that can reach the hull bottom. An example of the former case is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,084,535 to Rees, and of the latter in U.S. Pat. No. 4,102,290 to Weiss. These arrangements have a substantial drawback in that they are difficult to maneuver over the bottom portion of the hull and clean only a small area of the hull at a time.
One attempt to overcome the problems associated with the above-described devices, was the development of a manual scrubbing belt described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,395,966 to Murphy. However, such belts suffer from the disadvantage that they must be manually drawn back and forth across the hull's undersurface. This device requires two operators, one situated on each side of the boat to be cleaned. Thus, the device can only be used where two operator platforms are available.
Approaches to automatic boat cleaning berths for cleaning the entire hull bottom have been proposed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,236,477 to Norris et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 4,102,290 to Weiss. However, these approaches suffer from drawbacks in that they require: (a) a framework on both the port and starboard sides of the berth; (b) an elaborate arrangement of supporting members for the cleaning brushes; (c) a complex array of hydraulic or pneumatic driving elements for positioning the brushes between cleaning and non-cleaning stations; and (d) numerous adjustments of the supporting members to position the brushes about the hull for cleaning. Such complicated systems are expensive, and difficult to operate and maintain.
Further, such systems are not sufficiently adaptable to be installed at a variety sites having different configurations. For example, in the patent to Norris et al., the device must rest on the floor of a body of water or be tied to pilings situated on each side of the device's framework. In the patent to Weiss, the device must be mounted to two closely spaced apart docks.